It wasn’t supposed to be this way. After winning the French national championships in June, Sylvain Chavanel, the popular French cyclist, came to this year’s Tour de France hoping to put on a real show in front of his fans. He was one of the heroes of the 2010 Tour de France after winning two stages, not to mention two days in the yellow jersey.

This year, with the blue-white-and-red national jersey on his shoulders, things at the Tour would be even better, he dreamed. But so far the reality has been different.

Spectacular crashes have marked the race so far, and few have been spared. Alberto Contador crashed on Stage 1. Seven Rabobank riders crashed on stage five, and three of RadioShack’s four leaders have crashed out of contention for yellow.

And Chavanel’s Quick Step team has not been spared. He crashed heavily on Stage 5 along with teammate Tom Boonen. And although he finished ahead of his Belgian teammate, he later learned he had dislocated his shoulder.

In his typical manner, Chavanel responded to injury by attacking early on the following stage. But the driving pain in his shoulder made him instantly reconsider. By the end of the day, demoralized by the pain, he lost contact with pack and nearly abandoned. But encouraged by his team, he clipped in, and eventually finished 12 minutes or so behind the leader.

“I just couldn’t drop out with the French champion's jersey on my shoulders,” he told Bicycling. “This is the Tour. You have to respect the national jersey.”

Even this morning, at the start of Stage 7, Chavanel did not know whether he could continue as the stage from Le Mans to Chateauroux was battered by northern winds.

“I’m really struggling,” he said. “But that too is part of the history of cycling. I came to this race hoping to get into many breakaways, maybe even get the yellow jersey. But after losing 12 minutes yesterday, it is a bit impossible. Now I just try to concentrate on healing. Today, I just need to get through the day and tell myself that tomorrow will be better.”

Photo: James Startt

Stage 7 started off poorly for the Quick Step team when Boonen abandoned the race 90 kilometers into the stage. Chavanel, however, appeared to improve as the day progressed, finishing the stage in the front group despite another massive crash that destroyed the chances of British rider Bradley Wiggins, who broke his collarbone, and American rider Chris Horner, who was knocked out (but managed to finish the stage).

Yet according to Quick Step team doctor, Toon Cruyt, it is possible to for Chavanel to ride through a dislocated shoulder. “Normally, he will be better in a couple of days. But right now it is still hard. When he is just holding onto his bars it is OK, but when he gets out of his saddle he is in a lot of pain. He has almost no movement. If he can just make it to the rest day, it will be OK.”

The 32-year-old Chavanel is not a contender for the yellow jersey because the high mountains of the Pyrenees and Alps remain out of reach. But like his countryman Thomas Voeckler, he is respected for his aggressive style of racing that has made him a regular stage winner.

The following two stages to Superbesse and Saint Flour are classic Chavanel stages. Veering into France’s Massif Central region, they are riddled with mid-level climbs.

“Normally, these are good stages for me—that's true. And they are predicting some bad weather, which is good for me, but after my crash I just don’t know what is possible. But I know that in cycling, I know that the wheel turns. So I have to hope that there will still be opportunities in this year’s race.”